This invention relates to a cover for a drinking cup and more particularly to one that provides effective sealing and enhanced resealing.
The cover of this invention has a tab on the cover which can be opened to allow drinking from the cup and which can be reclosed to keep the contents from spilling.
Disposal plastic or paper cups are employed for beverages such as coffee and tea with a lid that fastens on the top to prevent spillage. Such lids normally have a tab which can be bent up and back to provide an opening from which the user can drink liquid. The tab recloses to limit spillage. Examples of sealing covers are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,858,767; U.S. Pat. No. 3,977,559; U.S. Pat. No. 4,090,660; U.S. Pat. No. 4,202,459; U.S. Pat. No. 4,210,272; U.S. Pat. No. 4,738,373 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,796,774.
The primary operational limitation of the designs shown in the above patents, and other designs observed in use by applicant, is that the resealing feature has limited effectiveness. After the tab is first lifted, often by breaking a scored line that joins the tab to the rest of the cover, the subsequent closure of the tab often fails to provide adequate sealing. Inadequate sealing is of particular concern where the liquid is hot. It is also of particular concern where the drinker involved is driving an automobile and drinks from the cup a number of times thereby needing to reseal the container or cup after each mouthful or sip of coffee or other beverage.
Accordingly, the primary purpose of this invention is to provide a cover which will more effectively and more consistently reseal the beverage in a cup after the user has open the tab and drunk a portion of the beverage.
It is a related purpose of this invention to achieve the above purpose with a design that is relatively inexpensive to produce so that it is likely to be considered cost effective in competition with other known covers.
It is a further related purpose of this invention to achieve the above purposes with a design that is easy to use and manipulate so that a drinker who, for example, is driving a car can open and reseal the container easily as well as safely.
It is a further related purpose of this invention to provide such a device as is readily adapted to be used as a disposable container cover.